In a blow to search giant Google, a San Francisco jury unanimously ruled in favour of Videogame maker Epic Games in an antitrust trial, media reports said.
“Victory over Google! After 4 weeks of detailed court testimony, the California jury found against the Google Play monopoly on all counts. The Court’s work on remedies will start in January,” Epic Chief Executive Tim Sweeney wrote in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Epic Games had sued Google in 2020 on allegations that the search giant used its dominant position to extract excess profits from app developers – challenging the up to 30 pc fee that Google imposes on developers for in-app sales. The lawsuit also said Google was unlawfully scheming to make its Play store dominant over rival app stores.
Google, in a statement, said it would appeal against the judgement. “We will continue to defend the Android business model and remain deeply committed to our users, partners, and the broader Android ecosystem,” said Wilson White, vice-president of government affairs and public policy at Google, media reports stated.
“Today’s verdict proves that Google’s app store practices are illegal and they abuse their monopoly to extract exorbitant fees, stifle competition and reduce innovation,” Epic Games said in a statement on its website.
Google had settled related claims from dating app maker Match before the trial started. The company also settled antitrust claims by US states and consumers under terms that have not been made public, the Guardian reported.
Epic had lodged a similar antitrust case against Apple in 2020, but a US judge largely ruled in favor of Apple in September 2021, the Guardian report added.
